A continuously innovating China is a land of opportunity

Chinese brands are increasingly capturing global attention in the consumer electronics sector.

Early this September, they took center stage at IFA Berlin, the world's leading consumer electronics trade show. On display were Chinese humanoid robots advancing into real-world application scenarios and smart home products featuring proactive sensing and collaborative AI services.

Not long ago, the smartphone industry saw a "super release week" for foldable phones. Huawei, Xiaomi and Apple unveiled their respective flagship products within 72 hours, pitting leading Chinese and international brands against each other in the same product category and sparking widespread discussion.

Such moments are no longer outliers; they reflect a broader industrial shift.

Decades ago, China's manufacturing base was comparatively underdeveloped. Across many sectors, the country started late, trailing global leaders in advanced technologies, standard-setting influence and even foundational design concepts.

Its early path forward relied heavily on imitation and incremental improvement. Today, that narrative has reversed. From artificial intelligence and new-energy vehicles to robotics and aerospace reusability, China now competes on equal footing — or leads — in numerous domains. In previously uncharted territories, it has emerged as both a pioneer and a rule-maker.

These breakthroughs stem from the cumulative power of scientific and technological innovation. The smartphone industry is a clear example. Ultimately, cutting-edge technologies have empowered Chinese brands to enter the high-end market. Breaking free from the lower rungs of industrial and value chains is an arduous uphill climb that requires continuously building brand competitiveness and technological moats.

A customer tries out a new-generation tri-fold smartphone by Chinese tech firm Huawei, the Mate XT 2, at a Huawei store in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province, on September 7, 2026. (Photo provided to People's Daily)

None of this would have been possible without a highly coordinated innovation ecosystem.

The numbers tell a clear story. The World Intellectual Property Organization recently released its report on the world's top 100 innovation clusters as part of the Global Innovation Index 2026.

China is home to 25 of the world's top 100 innovation clusters, the largest number for the fourth consecutive year. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster ranked first for the second consecutive year. As a cornerstone of China's national innovation ecosystem, these regional innovation clusters reflect the steady growth of China's capacity for scientific and technological innovation.

Clear strategic priorities drive progress: state support for sci-tech advancement, the cultivation of advanced, locally adapted industrial capabilities and targeted policy incentives.

Equally important is the sheer scale and dynamism of the country's domestic market, which generates rich application scenarios for iterative testing and commercialization.

Underpinning both is a deepening talent pool, fueled by tighter integration across education, research and industry — a virtuous cycle that continually upgrades the quality and distribution of skilled professionals.

A robot dances with residents in Taoyuan subdistrict, Shawan, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo provided to People's Daily)

These groundwork efforts nurture sparks of innovation and creativity, building momentum for high-quality development.

Yet a clearer understanding of how China's innovation-driven model works also makes it harder to sustain certain misconceptions.

For years, some policymakers and media outlets have amplified warnings about a so-called "China Shock 2.0," attributing China's progress in high-end manufacturing to industrial subsidies and stoking anxiety in the process.

In practice, as one international observer noted, China operates like "the world's toughest gym." Competition and innovation are embedded in its development model. Rather than delivering a disruptive "shock," China's progress expands global opportunities; rather than displacing foreign competitors, it often creates new markets and capabilities.

The evidence is mounting. Volkswagen has adjusted its R&D plans at its Wolfsburg headquarters based on the model of its R&D center in Hefei, East China’s Anhui Province. Chinese AI models have ranked first for 20 consecutive weeks in terms of weekly global usage among large AI models.

As a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation converges with China's historic transition in its development model, China is pressing ahead with innovation and working to build itself into a global source of scientific and technological innovation. With such fertile ground for development, China is set to continue surprising the world with innovation.

A technician tests new materials at a storage-materials research institute in Meishan, Southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Photo provided to People's Daily)